Zip wires in action

Here are a couple of videos of the zip wires....amazing.

4000 Islands by Megan and Emma

We went to 4000 Islands yesterday...literally 4000 islands it seemed! These are islands in a part of the Mekong river. The river was murky but huge. We took a boat for a few hours to the main island where we had lunch. After lunch, we got on two motorbikes and rode to some amazing, powerful and fierce rapids.

After that, we walked to the beach where we both paddled in the Mekong river.

We felt like we were sinking, as under the water, the sand and mud suddenly dropped. After that we did some sandboarding.Sandboarding is sliding down a slope of sand with your shoes on, and being unable to stop so you run into the water! After we had finished at the beach, we went to wash our feet in the water. Six little fish came and started to bob up at the surface and kept on darting in and out of my (megans)feeti!! when we came away from the beach, we got back on the motorbikes and rode back to the boat on the other side of the island.

We then set off to look for some Irrawaddy dolphins. They are an endangered species and here is a link if you want to learn more about them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irrawaddy_dolphin There are only 8 dolphins left in the Mekong, and one has recently died. We were lucky enough to have four sightings of them, although we didn't manage to get any photographs; they were up and down too quickly, and kept popping up at different spots. We found out that the dolphins can stay under the water for up to two to three minutes at a time, and stay together as a pack. We saw some people at the side of the river washing their clothes in the murky water.(Not very nice for them) The kids and babies were washing THEMSELVES in the water too! Even though we thought this wasnt very nice for them, they still looked very happy.

Something we found out about the houses in Laos is that, because it is very hot here, the houses are on stilts so the people can cook and work in shade. They practically live under the house,and only go in for sleeping.They put their vehicles under so they dont get too hot(that is if they have any!!)

On the tourist trail...Katy

After a gruelling (but amazing) two days in the jungle, we decided to have an easy day today (Friday; we are a bit behind with the blog!) and booked a tour taking in a few different things...not really what the girls would've chosen, but we found it interesting (so i am thinking this post might not be the most exciting one for children; have a go though!!) It also turned out to be our first rainy day, so being driven round in a minivan from place to place worked out fine. First we stopped at a shack at the side of the road where they were making knives using methods that were being used in the uk years ago; which in itself isn't that interesting, then they told us that they were using the metal from bombs to make the knives, and bombs to hammer the heated steel on!!

I don't know about the girls learning things on this trip, but Dean and I are learning loads too. Before starting to plan this trip, I had never even heard of Laos never mind its history. Laos is the most bombed country per capita in the world. Between 1964 and 1973, an average of one bomb every 8 minutes, 24 hours a day were dropped on parts of laos!! An estimated 80 million didn't detonate, and have caused numerous deaths and maimings since. The bombings were part of a campaign by America to cut off supplies to Vietnam during the war. Now as you you know I am not great with current affairs, but I wonder how many of you knew about this 'silent war'? Anyway, it was nice to see something good coming out of something so horrific. We then visited another waterfall; beautiful- even in the rain!

Dean loved our next stop (not)- a replica of a hill tribe village. I found it interesting; an insight into the way many minority Laotians still live their lives. The girls liked the idea of the village chief and his family having special chairs, and having all the villagers cook for, and look after them.

Next we went to a tea and coffee plantation, and learned a bit about the trees and the processes involved in the early stages of coffee and tea production. we also got to sample some different teas, and coffees made from different beans. (Not quite sure how sampling laos whisky came into this, but as we sat round a little fire chatting with the guide, our driver, and a couple of belgian women who were spending their holiday on the plantation(!!), dean had a couple of whiskies!)

our guide didn't have great English, but I get the impression that Laotian farmers don't always get the best deal in this lucrative industry. Fair trade signs are dotted around, but i think they still could get a better deal if they could cut out the middle man more and more, which is slowly starting to happen.

Our last stop was another waterfall - spectacular; yet Megan and Emma took one look, said 'wow', then spent their time messing about with hammocks!!

We have said we wonder what their abiding memories of this trip will be. One of Megan's favourite parts of today was when the guide (remember- poor English), was telling us about the most expensive coffee beans being the ones that come from bear poo after the bears have eaten coffee beans. Except he wasn't using the word 'poo'; he was using a much more 'impolite word' (as he later described it) with a completely straight face, which Megan found very funny. We helped him out with a more family friendly way of describing it (he wanted to know how to spell it-typing it into his phone to check with us). However once the girls were out of earshot, dean taught him a few others too!! Another highlight of today for them was using the very basic toilet on the plantation (a ceramic hole basically!!) I won't go into details (ask us when you see us next), but dean said you could hear us laughing from quite a distance from the toilet shed. The poor guide thought we were still laughing about his use of a rude word!! A fairly tame day by recent standards, but a good one nonetheless! BTW- I know lots of people have said that they can't leave a comment on the blog. Megan and Emma would love to hear what you think/hear from people, so please send them an email instead to 'meganhowford@hotmail.co.uk' We are also going try to put some videos of the zip lining onto the relevant blogs, so check back in a couple of days and see if they are on...don't know if the photos truly capture just how amazing they were.

Treetop explorer by Emma

On Wednesday, we went to 'treetop explorer'. When we got there, we set off on a long trek to go on the long and terrifying zip wires. As we approached the first one, I was very scared, but as soon as I set off, I was fine.

My favourite zip wire was the fastest one because the wind was brushing against my face. it was like a roller coaster!! After doing 8 zip wires, we got to the main camp where we had dinner; grab your grub!! after dinner we sat round the fire. they had a ginger kitten who curled up in a ball with us.

it had been a long and tiring day, so we put on our helmets and harnesses to zip into our tree house. Then we all settled down to have a good sleep...lights out!

Day 2
Thursday was our last day, but we still had some activities. first we needed breakfast to give us energy. As soon as we finished breakfast, we trekked to the first zip wire. The guides put their heads right back like they were going upside down.

I decided to try and do this myself; bad idea because it hurt my chest.
The zip wires went past the glorious waterfalls and I could feel the spray on my face. the zip wires were extremely high; higher than the tops of some trees. We did seven very long zip wires, and then trekked back to the camp for lunch.

After lunch, we started the three hour trek and climb home. We immediately started to climb through the jungle. At one point ŵe had to do some rock climbing as far up as i could see.

When we got to the finish, we were all soaking with sweat, and steam was coming off all the men's heads and bodies. This made Megan  and I giggle.

It will be the best memory of my life!

Treetop explorer by Megan

On Wednesday,  we went to 'treetop explorer'.This was a trip where we got  to zip wire over the jungle, and sleep in a treehouse over night. It was tiring, but fun at the same time. This is where the adventure began...
In the morning, we got up early to get to the office on time. We had to be there at 8 o'clock so we could start the drive, but unfortunately some other people who were coming with us were late, so we didn't set off until 8:45 :(
When we got to the village nearest to the jungle, we had to put on all our equipment so at we didn't have to put it on when we got to the zip wires. as soon as we were ready, we started the long trek into the jungle. The walk was about an hour and a half in total, but after about 5 minutes I started to complain. luckily I got used to it and pushed through.When we got to the half way point, it was time for lunch :)) The guides laid out some banana leaves, and poured the food out onto them.  There was no cutlery, but Emma and I didn't mind getting messy.

after a long walk, we finally got to the first zip wire. I wasn't scared, but I had a few thoughts running through my mind...would the wire snap, would it be safe etc?
It was my turn next!! As soon as I was attached, I jumped off the platform and started to fly. I felt very safe, and the views were mind blowing.

Out of all 8 zip wires we did that day, my favourite was the one where you zipped past a waterfall, and felt the spray brushing against your face.
once we had completed all of the zips, we made a 10 minute walk to the main camp. as soon as my dad took off his helmet, steam rose from his head due to sweat!
as we were very tired, we put our harnesses and helmets back on, and zipped in to our tree house straight after dinner. we soon discovered that the light in our treehouse was broken (not the bulb; the guide checked that). After a couple of minutes, the guides gave up trying to fix it, and zipped out of treehouse without any word (they couldn't speak any English.) For a few minutes we thought that they might come back, but soon realised that they weren't.  I didn't sleep very well, as I kept thinking that something was sat on my head! The treehouse was very open, so any sort of creature could have come in; even a monkey!! (We didn't see any in the jungle, but saw lots of evidence of them i.e. monkey poo!!)

In the morning we discovered we had been lucky not to have had a light, as some others in our group had spotted rodents running around the walls, and had had cookies from their bag nibbled on.
After breakfast, we got straight on with more zip lines; including one that was 420m long. from the platform where you started, you couldn't even see the landing platform!! we did seven zip lines in total that day, as well as a few small ones that didn't count.

The trek back to the main camp was long and tiring. As I had hurt my knee the day before, I started to struggle. I tripped over a few tree roots,  slipped on some rocks, but eventually made it. When we got back, I drank a full bottle of water, and poured another one over my head!! I didn't feel like eating what was on offer for lunch, so instead ate a full tube of Pringles; my type of meal!
The way out of the jungle was even harder than the trekking in the morning, but as there was only one way out, I had to do it. As well as the difficult trekking, we had to climb up a 90 foot rock face using metal pegs. Emma and I wanted to tackle this ourselves, however as even some fully grown adults struggled to reach some of the grips, it would have been impossible for us, so we got strapped to the back of a guides back the whole way up; I HATED it!!!!!
After what seemed like an eternity, we got back to the village to get the minibus back to our hotel. I got a giant bottle of 7up, and drank it all in one go!

this was an amazing experience even though it was difficult at times.

Luang Prabang by Katy

Well we have moved on from Luang Prabang now and on to Pakse. Pakse is not a patch on Luang Prabang with its French patisseries, beautiful restaurants and ornate temples, but we have lots of adventures lined up, so don't intend spending much time in the town itself. On that note, I had our last day in Luang Prabang earmarked for going to see some more temples and palaces, but given that a) it was 32 degrees and sunny and b) the others felt that once you've seen one temple, you've seen them all(!!) , we ended up going back to the outdoor pool and chilling out. The girls enjoyed going to the swim up bar and ordering a drink, and playing with an inflatable globe (thank you Rosie and Beatrice!).

My Scotland flag is coming in very handy as a cover up  (thank you Iain-I am buying mini flags for each of the countries we visit, and will sew them on when we get back).

Our guesthouse in Luang Prabang was right next to one of the main temples in the town- golden city temple (wat Xieng thong).

This was lovely on one hand (we had to walk past it daily, and could see the monks going about their daily lives;  sometimes hearing them chanting and praying),

 and a nightmare on the other hand (drums and cymbals at 4 o'clock in the morning on their holy days, which occur on different days depending on the moon, but just happened to come around twice during our stay! Also daily drumming at 6 o'clock just before the alms procession.

I loved our time in Luang Prabang; the people are lovely, the atmosphere relaxed, and it has plenty of cafes and restaurants-ideal!!

Our airport experience in Luang Prabang  was one of the most chilled and easy we have ever had. We left the guest house at 9,  and were in the air for 10:30. furthermore the security staff were friendly and happy;  a real rarity in airports!

I must say however, once we were in the air I wasn't so relaxed. The forecast had been for thunderstorms and rain, but we left blue skies in Luang Prabang and arrived to blue skies in pakse. We have escaped all aftermath of the typhoon. So glad it didn't hit Laos. The shacks we saw on our trips out of the town wouldn't have stood a chance in winds of any force. Once you leave the town (or even the old quarter where we were staying for that matter), you see just how poor a country it is. Yet, as part of what we are trying to show the girls, the people seem happy. A lesson for us all.....

Kuang Si falls by Megan

Yesterday, we got up early to go to Kuang Si falls. Instead of taking a taxi, we got a tuk tuk. The journey was very bumpy and windy, and my Dad hit his head on the roof 3 times.

When we got to the car park, we saw a sign saying 'waterfall' so we started to walk in that direction. Just before we hit the waterfall, I spotted a giant enclosure with 9 sun bears in it. I didn't know they were sun bears at the time; it said so on a sign. The bears had been rescued from their old homes, which were cages of 1x1 metres each!! Two of the cubs were play fighting in a hammock (very cute!!)

We carried on walking until we came upon the waterfall. The water was a beautiful shade of blue with lots of vegetation surrounding it. Even though it was an amazing colour, the water was freezing!! Emma and I jumped in straight away to get it over with, but my Dad took his time.

We couldn't stay long in the water, as it was so cold. When my Dad and Emma swam over to a tree to catch their breath, they saw a huge snake swimming across the water with its head held high. After that, Emma refused to go in the water in that part again, so that left me and my Dad (my Mum was busy taking photos).

We swam over to a rock in the middle of the pool. We jumped off the rock, and the rapids took us all the way back to my Mum and Emma like a lazy river.

The reason we got there early was to beat the crowds, and by 11:30 we could see why....it was mobbed!

On a sign near the bears enclosure, we saw a sign that said that they fed them at 12:30, so we started to head back for that. When we got there, the man had started to bring the bears inside, so that it was safe to put the food in. Instead of putting the food in a bowl, the man hid it in lots of different places, so it was like foraging for food in the wild.

By 12:45, we were back in the tuk tuk on the way home.

We went for lunch as soon as we got back to town, then spent the rest of the day doing some school work and relaxing, before going out for dinner.